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Plans emerge for new restaurant in south Hastings at Papa's site

Planning for a new Hastings restaurant is well under way. Me & Julio's is the new name, and it will be located in what used to be Papa Charrito's.

"We wanted to have a name that sounded fun, and we wanted to have a name that sounded American and Mexican, 'Me' being American and 'Julio' being Mexican," said Charlie Burrows, one of the building's owners.

Burrows and his partner, Linda Young, purchased the property in November. They're no strangers to the restaurant business, and already own Lucky's 13 Pub in Mendota and Bloomington, a franchise store in South Dakota and a Rudy's Redeye Grill in Rosemount. Me & Julio's, Burrows said, will be a sit-down neighborhood restaurant serving American and Mexican food.

On Monday, the Hastings Planning Commission reviewed a site plan proposal for the building. The plan includes a 587 square foot kitchen addition to the east side of the building and an expanded outdoor seating area, as well as some other outdoor building treatments.

"The infrastructure wasn't conducive to being a very good restaurant," Burrows said.

There were no coolers, and the kitchen wasn't as large as they'd like to have, he explained. The addition will remedy all that.

During the brief time the restaurant was Papa's Bar and Grill, an addition had been planned for the back of the building, said Planning Associate Justin Fortney. But after a fire closed the business, the expansion was never done.

Changes proposed for the building won't have a significant impact on its appearance.

"It will have the same basic character, but a lot of details will be different," Fortney said.

Burrows and Young are adding wood, stucco and stone to the outside of the building to dress it up, Burrows said.

The commission approved the site plan, which will now go to the city council for approval. Once the council approves it, the new owners can get building permits and start construction. Burrows said that construction is expected to begin as soon as they get through the permitting process with the city.

Katrina Styx started working at the Hastings Star Gazette 2010 as a reporter. She became the editor in 2016. She has a bachelor's degree in English with a minor in journalism from the University of Wisconsin - River Falls. Prior to coming to Hastings, Katrina reported for weekly newspapers in Jordan, Minn., and River Falls, Wis.